Glendale Adventist Academy basketball passes first test

It was a sight Glendale Adventist Academy first-year girls’ basketball Coach Joseph Naguit had been eager to see for quite some time.

Naguit had a vision of Glendale Adventist applying defensive pressure from start to finish and scoring points off the transition.

It worked rather well for the Cougars on Thursday night, as senior Madi Federici finished with 14 points to spark visiting Glendale Adventist to a 38-17 victory against Packinghouse Christian in a CIF Southern Section Division VI opening-round contest.

The 13th-seeded Cougars, who received an at-large berth out of the Liberty League, improved to 6-7 and will next face fourth-seeded Baptist Christian or Noli Indian in a second-round game Saturday.

“We’ve wanted them to apply a lot of pressure,” Naguit said. “We had been missing that kind of pressure and grit the last few games and we wanted to see how we could go out and play that way.

“We were able to do a lot of things well. We also had a lot of communication.”

Packinghouse Christian finished 7-8 after placing third in the Majestic League.

Glendale Adventist, which received a balanced scoring attack, led the entire game and held a 26-6 halftime lead. The Cougars got eight points apiece from senior forward Brittney Gregg and junior Harley Federici and seven from senior Melisa Lopez.

Gregg said the Cougars, who were making their first playoff appearance in three seasons, were determined to hold Packinghouse Christian at bay.

“It was important to come out with a lot of intensity,” Gregg said. “Things fell into place and we were excited.

“We had people who went out there and did a lot of good things.”